IEP Help for Families

100+ Free IEP Resources & Guides

Plain-language articles on IEPs, 504 plans, parent rights, and navigating the special education system, written by a BCBA with years on the school side.

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The IEP Meeting Survival Kit

What to bring, what to ask, and what the school isn’t required to tell you, written by someone who used to run those meetings.

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Working With Advocates

What Does an IEP Advocate Do?

The role, the limits, and why having one in the room changes the outcome.

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Working With Advocates

Is an IEP Advocate Worth the Cost?

An honest answer from someone who has worked both sides of the IEP table.

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Working With Advocates

What Is a BCBA and Why Does It Matter for Your Child's IEP?

How a Board Certified Behavior Analyst brings clinical depth to IEP advocacy.

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Working With Advocates

IEP Advocate vs. Special Education Attorney: Which Do You Need?

The key differences, when to use each, and how to choose.

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Working With Advocates

How IEP Advocacy Works: From First Call to IEP Meeting

What the process looks like when you hire an advocate for your child.

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Working With Advocates

Virtual IEP Advocate: How It Works

How Zoom advocacy works, what to expect, and why it's just as effective.

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Working With Advocates

Online IEP Advocate: What to Look For

Finding qualified virtual advocacy and what separates good from great.

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Working With Advocates

Online IEP Advocate, Nationwide Virtual Services

How a BCBA advocate can serve families anywhere in the U.S. via Zoom.

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Working With Advocates

Special Education Advocate vs. Case Manager: What's the Difference?

Why your child's school case manager cannot advocate for them.

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Working With Advocates

How to Find an IEP Advocate

Credentials to look for, questions to ask, red flags to avoid.

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Working With Advocates

Meghan Moore, BCBA: Charlotte IEP Advocate

Credentials, school-side background, and why she founded Mama Moore Advocacy.

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IEP Basics

IEP vs. 504 Plan: What's the Difference?

Which plan is right for your child and what each one can and can't do.

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IEP Basics

What Is FAPE? Free Appropriate Public Education Explained

The legal standard every IEP must meet and how to tell when it isn't met.

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IEP Basics

The IEP Process, Step by Step

From evaluation request to annual review, every step parents need to understand.

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IEP Basics

How to Read Your Child's IEP

PLAAFP, goals, services, placement, what each section means and what to watch for.

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IEP Basics

The IEP Evaluation Process Explained

What the school tests, what they must test, and how eligibility is determined.

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IEP Basics

IEP Eligibility: All 13 IDEA Disability Categories

Every category explained, with examples and what adverse effect means.

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IEP Basics

Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) Explained

What LRE means, how placement decisions are made, and how to push back.

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IEP Basics

IEP Accommodations vs. Modifications: What's the Difference?

Why the distinction matters and which one your child actually needs.

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IEP Basics

IEP vs. Gifted Services: Can a Child Have Both?

Twice-exceptional children and navigating both systems at once.

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Getting Services

The School Says My Child Doesn't Qualify. What Now?

Your options after an ineligibility determination and how to fight it.

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Getting Services

How to Request More Services on Your Child's IEP

Building the case, the right language, and what to do when the school says no.

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Getting Services

My Child's IEP Isn't Being Followed. What Can I Do?

How to document noncompliance and what formal steps are available.

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Getting Services

How to Disagree With IEP Recommendations

Staying in the room, protecting your rights, and building a paper trail.

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Getting Services

IEP Goals Aren't Working. How to Change Them.

When goals need to be updated, how to request a review, and what better looks like.

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Getting Services

How to Get Speech Therapy on an IEP

Eligibility, what SLP services on an IEP include, and how to advocate effectively.

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Getting Services

School Denied an IEP Evaluation: Your Rights

What to do when the school refuses to evaluate, including your IEE rights.

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Getting Services

How to Get an IEP for My Child

From first request to eligibility determination, the complete parent guide.

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Getting Services

IEP Transition Planning: What High Schoolers Need

What transition plans must include and how to prepare for life after graduation.

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Getting Services

Extended School Year (ESY) Services: A Parent's Guide

When ESY is required, how to request it, and what it should look like.

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Getting Services

Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP) Explained

What a good BIP contains, how to evaluate whether yours is working.

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Getting Services

Functional Behavior Assessment: A Parent's Guide

What an FBA is, how it informs the BIP, and what makes one credible.

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Getting Services

Related Services on an IEP: What Your Child Is Entitled To

Speech, OT, PT, counseling, transportation, and the full list of what schools must provide.

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Getting Services

Assistive Technology on an IEP: What to Ask For

Devices, software, and low-tech tools schools must consider for your child.

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Getting Services

IEP Goals: What Good Looks Like (and What to Watch For)

How to spot a weak goal, what makes a goal measurable, and how to push for better.

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Getting Services

IEP Summer Services: Extended School Year (ESY) Deep Dive

Building a regression-recoupment case and fighting for the summer services your child needs.

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Getting Services

Medicaid Waivers and the IEP: What Parents Need to Know

How waivers interact with IEP services and why schools can't use Medicaid to reduce what they owe.

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Getting Services

Private Evaluation vs. School Evaluation

The conflict of interest problem, what private evals offer, and when to get one.

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Getting Services

COVID Learning Loss and Your Child's IEP: Compensatory Ed Rights

How to document missed pandemic services and request make-up services from the district.

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IEP Meetings

How to Prepare for an IEP Meeting

The complete parent checklist: documents to gather, questions to ask, things to watch for.

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IEP Meetings

What Happens at an IEP Meeting? A First-Timer's Guide

Who is in the room, what the agenda looks like, and how to participate effectively.

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IEP Meetings

Questions to Ask at an IEP Meeting

20 questions every parent should be ready to ask at the table.

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IEP Meetings

What to Bring to an IEP Meeting

The documents, data, and notes that strengthen your position before you walk in.

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IEP Meetings

IEP Annual Review: What Parents Should Know

How to use the annual review strategically rather than just sign and leave.

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IEP Meetings

How to Request an IEP Meeting

You can call a meeting at any time. Here's how to do it correctly in writing.

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IEP Meetings

IEP Meeting Tips for Parents: Before, During, and After

Practical tactics for staying focused, calm, and effective throughout the meeting.

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IEP Meetings

What to Do After an IEP Meeting

The critical steps in the 48 hours after the meeting that most parents skip.

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IEP Meetings

How to Write Your IEP Parent Concerns Section

The one section parents own entirely and how to use it strategically.

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Parent Rights

What Are Your Rights as a Parent in an IEP Meeting?

The IDEA rights that put you on equal footing with the school team.

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Parent Rights

Parent Participation Rights on the IEP Team

What meaningful participation means legally and how to enforce it.

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Parent Rights

Prior Written Notice: What the School Must Tell You in Writing

When PWN is required, what it must contain, and how to use it.

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Parent Rights

Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE): Your Rights

When and how to request a school-funded private evaluation under IDEA.

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Parent Rights

Can You Record an IEP Meeting? Know Your State's Rules

Recording consent laws, how to ask, and what to do with the recording.

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Parent Rights

IEP Dispute Resolution: All Your Options Explained

State complaint, mediation, due process, and when to use each one.

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Parent Rights

When to Hire a Special Education Attorney

The escalation point where an attorney becomes the right tool, not an advocate.

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Parent Rights

IEP Reimbursement for Private School Placements

When schools fail FAPE, parents may be entitled to tuition reimbursement under Burlington/Carter.

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Parent Rights

Section 504 vs. ADA: What Happens After High School?

How disability rights shift when your child leaves K-12 and enters college or work.

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Parent Rights

IEP to College: What Happens to Disability Services After High School?

The legal cliff at graduation and how to prepare before it arrives.

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Parent Rights

Can a Parent Bring an Advocate to an IEP Meeting?

Yes. Your IDEA rights and what schools cannot do to stop you.

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Parent Rights

IEP Confidentiality and Parent Records Rights

FERPA and IDEA give you strong rights to access, control, and correct your child's records.

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Parent Rights

Manifestation Determination: IEP Discipline Rights Explained

What it is, when it's triggered, and what happens if the behavior IS the disability.

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Parent Rights

Special Education Due Process: A Parent's Guide

When to file, what the hearing involves, and whether you need an advocate or attorney.

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Condition-Specific

IEP Advocacy for Autism: What Parents Need to Know

ASD-specific IEP strategies, BCBA services, and what good autism support looks like.

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Condition-Specific

IEP for a Child with ADHD

OHI eligibility, executive function supports, and the right accommodations for ADHD.

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Condition-Specific

IEP for Anxiety: School Accommodations That Help

Eligibility paths for anxiety, what services help, and why a 504 often isn't enough.

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Condition-Specific

Twice-Exceptional (2e) IEP: Gifted and Learning-Different

How giftedness can mask disability, and how to get both needs recognized.

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Condition-Specific

Speech Delay and IEP Services: What to Ask For

Eligibility under SLI, what speech therapy on an IEP includes, and what good looks like.

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Condition-Specific

IEP for Down Syndrome

Eligibility, appropriate services, inclusion considerations, and transition planning.

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Condition-Specific

IEP for Cerebral Palsy

PT, OT, AT, and communication supports for students with CP.

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Condition-Specific

IEP for Hearing Impairment or Deafness

DHH eligibility, interpreter services, and the least restrictive environment analysis.

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Condition-Specific

IEP for Visual Impairment or Blindness

VI services, braille, orientation and mobility, and what IDEA requires for blind students.

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Condition-Specific

IEP for Intellectual Disability

Adaptive behavior, functional goals, and planning for meaningful post-secondary outcomes.

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Condition-Specific

IEP for Emotional/Behavioral Disorder (EBD)

ED eligibility, behavioral services, and how to keep discipline from replacing support.

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Condition-Specific

IEP for Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

TBI eligibility, the variable recovery profile, and services that address cognitive changes.

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Condition-Specific

IEP for a Nonverbal Child: AAC and Communication Services

Augmentative communication devices, SLP services, and the right to a voice in the IEP.

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Condition-Specific

IEP for Selective Mutism

OHI or ED eligibility, graduated exposure services, and why silence is not defiance.

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Condition-Specific

IEP for Sensory Processing Disorder

When SPD qualifies, OT services to request, and IEP vs. 504 for sensory challenges.

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Condition-Specific

IEP for Tourette Syndrome

OHI eligibility, tic protections, and addressing co-occurring ADHD and OCD.

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Condition-Specific

IEP for Dyscalculia

SLD in math, evidence-based interventions, and the right accommodations for math disabilities.

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North Carolina

The IEP Process in North Carolina: EC Program Guide

NC-specific timelines, DPI rules, and what makes NC's EC program different.

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North Carolina

NC Exceptional Children Program: Parent Rights

Your rights under the NC EC program and how they go beyond federal minimums.

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North Carolina

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Special Education Guide

Navigating CMS EC services, evaluation timelines, and how to escalate when needed.

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North Carolina

Free IEP Help in NC vs. Hiring a Paid Advocate

What free resources exist, where they fall short, and when a paid advocate is worth it.

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North Carolina

Dyslexia and the IEP in North Carolina

NC's dyslexia laws, SLD eligibility, and the Orton-Gillingham services families should request.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in Concord, NC

Serving Cabarrus County Schools families in person and via Zoom.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in Gastonia, NC

Advocacy for Gaston County Schools families in the greater Charlotte area.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in Rock Hill, SC

Virtual and in-person IEP advocacy for Rock Hill and York County SC families.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in Fort Mill and Tega Cay, SC

Expert IEP advocacy for Fort Mill School District families.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in Mooresville, NC

Serving Mooresville Graded School District families with BCBA-led advocacy.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in Huntersville, NC

IEP advocacy for CMS north zone families in Huntersville, Cornelius, and Davidson.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in Matthews, NC

Advocacy for Matthews, Mint Hill, and south Charlotte families in CMS.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in Monroe, NC

Helping Monroe and Union County Public Schools families get the services they deserve.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in South Carolina (Virtual)

SC-specific law differences, evaluation timelines, and virtual advocacy statewide.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in Kannapolis, NC

Serving Kannapolis City Schools and Rowan-Salisbury Schools families.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in Salisbury, NC

Expert IEP advocacy for Rowan-Salisbury Schools families throughout Rowan County.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in Statesville, NC

Serving Iredell-Statesville Schools families across Statesville and Iredell County.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in Waxhaw, NC

Union County Public Schools advocacy for families in fast-growing Waxhaw.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in Indian Trail, NC

UCPS advocacy for families near the Mecklenburg/Union County border.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in York, SC

Virtual IEP advocacy for York District One families in York County, SC.

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Locations

IEP Advocate in Lancaster, SC

Virtual IEP advocacy for Lancaster County School District families.

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